{"id":64745,"date":"2019-08-22t12:10:59","date_gmt":"2019-08-22t16:10:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/48e130086c.nxcli.net\/?p=64745"},"modified":"2019-09-02t15:07:49","modified_gmt":"2019-09-02t19:07:49","slug":"compliance-is-not-dead-its-evolving","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"\/\/www.g005e.com\/2019\/08\/22\/compliance-is-not-dead-its-evolving\/","title":{"rendered":"compliance is not dead, it\u2019s evolving"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"portrait<\/a>
fineberg<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

personal education is key.<\/strong><\/p>\n

by seth fineberg
\naccounting firm operations and technology survey<\/a>
\n<\/em><\/p>\n

for all of the talk of automation taking away basic accounting work and the bell tolling for any practitioner not moving toward more advisory work, the fact is compliance is not going away.<\/p>\n

if anything, the evolution of technology has made compliance work easier \u2013 and i dare say more profitable \u2013 for particularly small accounting firms that rely on this work as an annuity, their \u201cbread and butter\u201d if you will. the point is, and particularly for the small firms that make up the majority of the accounting profession, compliance is not going away but it is evolving.
\n
\ngranted, it\u2019s not all the profession is made up of, nor should it be for the future as, yes, business clients want and expect more but they still need it and done well and efficiently. this, i believe and have seen, is where technology does come in and needs to be embraced.<\/p>\n

i just want to make it clear that in my time covering and observing the profession, the notion and message that firms need to move beyond compliance work or punch their card, as it were, is not holding much water. it may have even \u201cscared\u201d some firms into making automation or business structure moves they were not prepared to make, possibly even losing business, but this is only anecdotal. the point is, many small firms depend on compliance work each year and, in some aspects, it has improved.<\/p>\n

take audit work, for example. long a staid, albeit arduous and even low-revenue but necessary client service, audit work (even small ones) can see a brighter future thanks to technology.<\/p>\n

with the evolution of tools like machine learning and blockchain and the increased acceptance of cloud, audit may finally have the time that core accounting and bookkeeping has enjoyed with the aforementioned technologies. to that end, much like initial fears of cloud and automation in general taking over traditional accountant duties, there is some talk that blockchain and the modernization of audit could diminish the role of auditors. but, like compliance work in general, i think not. after all, did xbrl put auditors out of the job (as some predicted)?<\/p>\n

that said, the answer here is not to move entirely out of your comfort zone (that does need to happen to some degree), but more education around<\/p>\n